Graphene is a single atomic layer of graphite. While the three dimensional crystal structure of graphite is hexagonal close packed, single graphitic layer or graphene has the structure of a hexagonal honeycomb. This structure of graphene can provide desirable properties, such as fractional quantum Hall effect, Andreev reflection and Klein tunneling, electron mobility up to about 200,000 cm2/Vs at room temperature, thermal conductivity ranging from about 3,000 Wm−1K−1 to about 5,000 Wm−1K−1 at room temperature, as well as high mechanical strength, e.g., a breaking strength of about 42 N/m. Because of these properties, graphene may be useful for electronic applications.
Known methods for production or synthesis of graphene include mechanical peeling or exfoliation of graphite crystals, and growth from vapor phase on epitaxially matched substrates, e.g., using chemical vapor deposition. However, the known methods are expensive and may not be suitable for scaling up.